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Everybody wants to be like Rutger.

I always looked up to him. He had this body that could do anything.

I have directed some fifteen movies...

but he appeared in ten times as many.

He was and will always be the most important actor in the Netherlands.

We had just travelled the world.

Since we no longer needed our RV, we decided to put it up for sale.

I kept it on my brother's country estate.

It was the perfect place to show it.

My sister-in-law cried out: 'Do you know who that is?'

'Dunno', I said. Never seen the man.

'It's Rutger Hauer from Turkish Delight.'

We had been away, travelling, so we had no idea.

The film was released that same year.

But we were halfway across the world, so we never heard about it.

So we bought the RV.

And in the back seat, there was this adorable little thing, sleeping...

in a little Oshkosh and with a head full of curls.

She was grumpy, because she just woke up. And that was Sanna.

For a good ten years, we saw Sanna and Pleun as our own kids.

I think it's very special...

for a mom to share her kids with us, since we didn't have any.

And that has never changed.

He loved kids and worshipped Sanna and Pleun.

Growing up, Rutger was my second dad.

We spent so much time together.

Sharing meals, having fun.

I mostly remember our adventures and silly holiday escapades.

Oh, you are filming?

You so are.

Tell us about a cute guy you know.

- Are you being filmed often? - Me? No.

Actually never.

This is all behind-the-scenes footage.

This is really old stuff.

But this shows how it really is in the industry.

What it's really like, not what it's supposed to be like.

I met Rutger through my brother Marius.

Rutger attended some poetry seminar at the theater in Heerenveen.

My younger brother was really into poetry, theater, authors and so on.

Then Marius called my parents...

asking if this stranded actor could spend the night.

'Of course he can. Sure.'

So, he came over to the house. And my mother had no idea who he was.

When she opened the guestroom...

there was this godly man lying in that bed.

And she yelled: 'There is a god in our bed.'

When Rutger woke up, we all had a great time. He felt at home.

In the end, he stayed for three days. That was how it all started.

My brother and Rutger instantly became very close friends.

So he spent a lot of time with Marius.

I was very much into textiles at the time.

One day, I told him I was off to Harlingen...

and search for items washed up on the shore...

to incorporate in my work.

'I'll join you', he said.

So off we went to Harlingen to scour the beach...

for materials I could use. It was a freezing cold February day.

And we went to Zeezicht café and had a hot chocolate together.

There he told me his entire life story...

even though I didn't know him at all.

But that was when I realized: This is the one. He's the one for me.

This is my man.

Then I went to visit him at his home in Siegerswoude.

And I was completely shocked, how can you live like that?

But I was touched by the alcove bed with its custom-made bed curtains.

They were blue with large, yellow sunflowers.

There was a kitchen, and he had a cat.

The stove was covered in clutter...

and there was trash piled up in the corner.

Eggshells, you name it. Such an awful and lonely place.

But he left something in his car, these giant theater shoes.

What are those, I thought.

They looked like they were size seven hundred.

But I guess he needed them for a play or something.

Young thespians Bernie Avery and Rutger Hauer...

graduated from the Amsterdam Academy of Theater and Dance...

and are now with the theater group Noorder Compagnie.

Why move so far up north?

Because I was very glad to even get an offer.

Once you graduate, you become part of the masses.

School is different from actual practice. Practice will prove...

whether you're any good. So that was part of the reason.

I mean, your private life is important too...

when you're involved in the arts. Theater isn't the be-all and end-all.

It's just one of the possibilities. I also like to write.

I want to expand my horizons. Do different things.

Time goes by much slower here.

Once you're here, you'll never want to leave.

I was 21 when I met Rutger, and 22 when we moved in together.

Looking back at it now, I was pretty young.

I wasn't even that interested in men. I was very career-oriented.

But the moment he came into my life, everything changed.

That was the start of 50 years together.

We never left each other's side.

happy birthday to you happy birthday to you

happy birthday dear Rutger

happy birthday to you

- Hip hip... - Hooray.

- Congratulations. - Thank you.

Thanks, Pleun.

- Congratulations. - Very funny, Hans.

Oddly enough, he never took any photos.

I always take pictures of everything.

But he never did. He just filmed everything...

with these mini video cameras.

Rutger was the person he was. He would jump off the bridge...

straight into the canals and in the Amstel river...

which were like an open sewer.

I was always swimming among the turds in the Amstel. I loved it.

I feel like, the second he came out of the womb...

he knew exactly who he was. He just knew as a little boy.

He was different than other kids. He always ran away.

He even walked to Schiphol Airport with his little sister...

while he was still in diapers. And that was quite a long walk.

Both of his parents were actors, so they would usually sleep in...

and let the kids fend for themselves.

He was always looking beyond the horizon.

I guess I was rather a wild child.

My first words were: Do you love me?

With a thick Amsterdam accent.

I remember my parents came back from an acting trip in Indonesia.

I was late with everything. I was late walking.

I was late talking. But the first thing I said when they came back:

Do you love me?

Rutger didn't really talk about his family.

You had to ask him specifically.

But Els says that I am very sweet.

She was our babysitter.

As a child, Rutger dreamed of fancy cars and amazing toys.

But all he got was a wooden toy car. He thought it was crap, of course.

So Pleun got spoilt rotten by him. He would always get the finest cars.

Awesome trucks and jeeps. He gave me a jeep when I was 5 or 6.

But he only gave it to me after he played with it first.

But soon after I played with it, it already broke down.

After his parents took him out of school...

he somehow ended up on a ship...

that sailed from Amsterdam all the way to the US and Singapore.

He was only 15, and working on this ship...

as a jack-of-all-trades, scrubbing the deck and whatnot.

Rut was a true sailor. The sea just called out to him.

If there was water in sight, he just had to get in.

Rutger may have been a world citizen...

but his true home was in Friesland.

That's where he spent all his summers growing up.

It's where he met me, Marius and my parents.

That's how he ended up in Friesland.

He was with the theater group Noorder Compagnie...

and toured the whole country.

But at the same time the TV series Floris was aired.

It was a total coincidence that I started to work with Rutger.

Two weeks before we started filming our show...

our lead actor Carol van Herwijnen...

didn't get permission from The Rotterdam Theater group...

so at the last moment we were left without a lead.

Action.

Take them away.

We were all so young. I was fresh out of theater school...

where I had learned nothing about acting.

But I remembered a close-up shot...

of Rutger that we filmed for his audition...

And we had said: 'What a handsome guy. Shame he can't act.'

That's what we thought back then.

Want some?

He often yelled: 'Close your mouth, Rutger.'

Because I would always look like this...

The first day on set I remember thinking: Well, here I am.

Then suddenly something clicked.

It was like being struck by lightning.

And I thought to myself: This is my friend.

- The camera. - Yes, this thing right over here.

I don't know why, but I knew it was my friend.

And I told myself to keep remembering.

Rutger had this restlessness about him.

He was always looking for something else.

Not necessarily something bigger or better. But other possibilities.

It was in his nature to say: 'If you want something, go for it.'

He was like that with everything: his cars, his motorcycles and boats.

Right up until the bailiff came knocking on the door...

because he had run out of money.

When things got better...

it was always a surprise to see what they would pull up in.

The object of his interest changed repeatedly. But it was his passion.

He loved everything that moved, everything with an engine.

Marius and Rutger took a welding course...

and welded entire cars together to go racing with the local boys.

And not just for the heck of it. They would often win.

Marius owned this very old BMW motorcycle.

So they bought leather biker jackets at the Waterlooplein flea market...

and sped through Amsterdam.

We were poor but blissfully happy. The world was our oyster.

Everything was new. Theater was at its absolute height.

Dutch cinema was about to break through.

It was an extraordinary time.

And we didn't have a care in the world.

Why don't we start? Yes, go ahead.

I didn't even want Rutger to audition.

To me, he was just a peasant fighter with a sword.

There was no way.

So I refused to let him come in and play the part.

Back to your positions right away.

I know him too well. No way.

But the producer said: 'Why don't you give it a try?'

Halt. Hold it right there.

Fifteen minutes later it was a done deal.

I was completely wrong about him. He was so perfect for that role.

All the other candidates we had in mind simply paled in comparison.

It was as clear as day: Rutger is the one.

Sure, but it's just a book. It's not all true. It's only a story.

The story is leading. It's a given. I'm not trying to be Jan Wolkers.

I'm not nervous about the sex scenes. They're part of it.

If you leave that out, you miss a huge part of their lives.

Turkish Delight worried me a little bit. We just started dating.

And he had to be very physical with Monique, who was so adorable.

But I figured it was just a job.

Who wants to repeat an intimate scene ten times?

I'm sure some wouldn't even be able to do so.

Some men would be affected. But Rutger wasn't one of them.

At the time Rutger was head over heels in love with Sien.

They would visit the set sometimes.

And then they would snuggle up in my bed.

She didn't really appreciate Ineke doing that.

It was part of the artistic process. That was her character's bed.

She didn't want another woman to sit on it.

I was very shy back then, almost afraid to set foot on the set.

The medium of film was sacred to me at the time.

Perhaps because I'm an artist myself. You're creating something together.

So, what is that woman doing there?

I never noticed any sexual attraction.

They just got along really well.

But we weren't in love.

That's what made our relationship so special.

We were like brother and sister. And we spent a lot of time together.

One day Rutger goes: 'There's a motorcycle for sale in Rotterdam.

Do you want to check it out?'

So we drove to Rotterdam in the jeep we used for Turkish Delight.

Our hair was blowing in the wind. I just thought it was amazing.

He bought the motorcycle for quite a lot of money.

He must have spent about half his paycheck on it.

So we arrive back in Amsterdam at the Rokin...

where our production office was located...

and he was absolutely exhilarated.

He parks his bike...

and walks in all excited. 'Come see my motorcycle.'

Everyone was like: 'Hold on. I'll be there in a minute.'

Motorcycle GONE. It was just awful.

Unlocked, uninsured.

He looked at us and said: 'Oh well, I HAD a motorcycle.'

Back to business. Unbelievable.

Freedom was very important to him. It was his lifeline.

He just did what he felt he needed to do.

So, he was always off on his motorcycle...

not wanting to be tied down, not even on set.

You wouldn't find him having breakfast with other Dutch actors.

No way.

He was probably daydreaming by some lake in the morning.

He was always looking for adventure. That's how we travelled the world.

We would go hiking in the Canadian mountains...

or tour across New Zealand during his time off.

We never stayed in hotels. Never.

We would park our RV anywhere...

and in the evening the stars would light up.

And it would almost make you believe God exists.

I was always a bit apprehensive. I was different in that respect.

He was adventurous...

and always found a way to make it happen. But only just.

He only just managed to pass under that bridge. Or not.

He was absolutely fearless.

We didn't wear helmets in California. Our hair was thick with dust.

We would go out and have fun and suddenly he mentioned...

we have a premiere to attend.

But I need to wear something nice. 'Just wear a black T-shirt.'

But I am not like that at all. I wanted to dress up for a premiere.

That's what I loved most about us. Our super strong sense of adventure.

And some sort of urgency. It's funny looking back...

I feel the same way as him.

You only have one life to live after all.

Slimmie.

Slimmie.

We would always open our doors to ailing seagulls...

a three-legged goat, or stray dogs. We were surrounded by animals.

He attracted animals and kids like bees to honey.

They always preferred Rutger over me. He didn't have to do anything.

What do you want?

So this is our new barn. We set it up here...

to block that other building from our view.

And it works like a charm, as you can see.

The bunny tried everything to get in.

- Poor thing. - Look. It dug its way through.

I'm afraid to grab them.

Red means it's on, right?

- Gosh - See? Its eyes are still closed.

It's looking for the nipple.

How can it survive that long without milk?

Isn't it precious?

Let's return it to its brothers.

There. See you!

World War II fighter planes skim Valkenburg Naval Air Base...

to promote a period movie starring Rutger Hauer.

It was the spectacular presentation of the film Soldier of Orange.

I had cast Rutger as an SS officer...

later to be portrayed by Derek de Lint.

But when he auditioned for the role...

I asked him to also read for the main character.

And once again, he proved us...

we had been wrong for weeks. and Rutger should play the lead.

He never went out of his way for people. He wasn't a suck-up...

asking people how they were doing. Never. No. Never.

Which made people feel very insecure.

He didn't judge people either, and hated it when I did.

But that's just human, I think. He never did though.

If I did, he would say 'No need for that, Sien'.

In those days, Marius was always around.

He was studying in Amsterdam.

But he came over every weekend and stayed with them often.

Rutger and Marius were joined at the hip.

But he was also very close to his sister.

They would do fun stuff together...

working on odd jobs and small renovations.

Coming. That is excellent.

That wasn't so bad, was it? Yeah, not bad at all.

Marius and Ien, siblings, had a very close relationship.

And we would love to be around them.

We would have dinner together nearly every week.

Of course we would prepare the most exquisite meals.

Those were wonderful times.

- Here's to the Iron Heinrich. - Bon voyage. Bravo.

We were all just starting our lives.

And all of us lived life to the fullest.

One day Rutger and Hans decided to buy an old barge.

It was a giant, bulky ship That we named the Iron Heinrich.

They renovated it together and installed two campervans.

One for Rut and me, the other one for Hans, Ien and the children.

Don't move.

We also had to navigate that beast through the locks.

It was so much fun, running around the mudflats...

the children barging through the mud, playing around and having fun.

It was just a wonderful, carefree and amazing time.

Of course, we had deep conversations all through the night.

That's what made our friendship so special.

How we complemented each other...

in the safe context of our intimate friendship.

Marius had a law degree and wanted to go to the Film Academy...

to become a cameraman.

And do all sorts of silly things with Rutger in America.

The Netherlands is a small country.

And I want to work with other directors.

I want to continue my career in film.

I might not have the opportunity here.

I could hang around and wait what happens...

but it's best to go abroad.

He came up with this idea of buying a truck, a semi-trailer.

He would load a container onto it and modify it into a trailer.

And so he set to work, with a lot of help from Marius.

This trailer was basically a large box.

A container pulled by a tractor unit.

Marius did all the wiring, and installed heaters and a shower.

With Sien decorating it to her taste it turned into an amazing trailer.

At some point, we bought and renovated an additional smaller RV.

Rutger and Ien still had that RV I once sold them.

And so we regularly hit the road in our RV's.

We took out a map of France...

and just pointed blindly to our next destination.

It was Paladru. We agreed to meet at Paladru's church square...

not knowing if Paladru had a church to begin with.

While trying to locate the church...

we suddenly noticed a cabinet door from their RV hanging from a tree...

that showed a large arrow and said: 'Church, this way.'

And so we found each other.

Marius celebrated his birthday in the RV. That was great.

We wore party hats and decorated the RV with garlands.

But we noticed a lump on his neck and we wondered what that could be.

Ien asked him: 'What's that bump over there, Marius?'

'I saw my physician', he said. 'It's a bit of a strange story.'

'We descended from fish, so this is a gill of sorts.'

Some rubbish about gills.

Total nonsense, of course.

It later turned out to be Hodgkin's Disease.

That was... That was quite intense.

My brother had chemotherapy, which was absolutely horrible.

This was over 40 years ago.

Treatment was very different back then.

Radiotherapy would make you terribly sick...

and chemo would cause severe fever.

All of a sudden the hospital decided to downsize the oncology ward...

and no longer accept patients.

- How long have you been ill? - Since April 1978.

A 14-year-old boy from Oude Pekela wrote a letter to the mayor...

saying wards were shut down, and asking for a solution.

Marius and Rutger started a protest that grew into a huge event.

Cancer patients, disabled people, and leukemia patients...

call for attention.

The weakest are offered a ride in the RV of actor Rutger Hauer.

He decided to lend his name to it, something he had never done before.

He even recorded a song and performed it in a trembling voice.

It was the scariest thing he had ever done.

he had so many plans for the future

and perhaps it was perhaps it was

Those able to walk...

with tubes up their noses and with crutches...

marched to The Hague and put together a mass demonstration.

Ready?

But his condition deteriorated rapidly.

It was more or less a hopeless situation.

This was during the time that Rutger was planning to leave for the US.

In 1980, Rutger landed a part in Nighthawks...

starring Sylvester Stallone. He initially refused.

But Marius insisted that he took the part. 'Get out of here.'

'Go for it. I'll be fine. I'll see you later.'

It was really hard for Rutger to say goodbye to his best friend.

We knew he was dying, just not exactly when.

He tried to come home as often as he could.

But he had signed contracts.

He had no choice but to return to the US.

So that was very hard on him.

He had barely been a week in the US when my brother passed away.

Rutger came back to help us arrange a beautiful funeral service...

before heading back to New York.

He was completely heartbroken and upset

and had to join Sly Stallone on set again.

So his first US feature film...

was a very difficult ordeal with him being unbelievably sad.

I couldn't be there. And I couldn't get to him sooner.

Because my mother had lost her only son and was all by herself.

That was when he decided to get a beautiful tattoo of Marius' name.

So he got his at New York Harbor.

Two years later he got a tattoo of my name with a bumblebee next to it.

I always such a busy bee...

and on top of that, I was also his little bumblebee.

Marius. Her son, her brother, my friend.

With death wandering behind your eyes and your breath gone...

I now slightly tighten the sails and push the mainsail into the wind.

As you ride the tide and head for the open sea...

I hold your hand one last time. And that hurts.

Nothing will ever be the same again.

I loved you just the way you were.

Marius was very important to him. Very important.

One glance was all they needed to understand each other.

That was a very close friendship.

Gosh, I still remember it so well...

It was all very impressive and beautiful.

I still miss my brother tremendously.

But after that, Rutger was determined to choose his own path.

I believe Marius was 29 at the time. So he was like:

'Screw you all. From now on, I do things the way I want to.'

You are also featured in De Telegraaf newspaper.

In Monday's edition. Something about Nighthawks.

They printed a rather curious picture...

of you in the gondola with that baby.

No, it didn't say that.

It only mentioned your work on Nighthawks...

together with Sylvester Stallone.

They mention something about it in here.

I think Ineke was the most important person in his life.

She was the center of his universe.

I have always believed his whole life revolved around Ineke.

Everyone else was but a mere shadow to him.

Rutger did everything for me.

I remember he was in Africa once. Somewhere far away.

Then he called me and said: 'Could you make some coffee?'

Make coffee? What do you mean?

'I'm passing Urk right now.'

'I'll be home in an hour.'

During his two days off he would fly from Cape Town to Amsterdam...

and drive another two hours to Friesland...

to be at home for just two nights. He did that all the time.

That feeling when you realize he's on his way home.

The world would light up with happiness.

Instead of the stereotypical villain in American films...

he was used to playing before, he was now cast as a hero.

I think Rutger was on his way...

to I wouldn't call it heroism, but stardom.

And I simply didn't realize that the film I wanted to make...

Flesh & Blood, cancelled out his upward trajectory.

He even said he wanted out.

But we just reminded him of our agreement.

'We have to start shooting. The film was written with you in mind.

You can't walk out on us like that.'

It made the situation with Rutger...

who now begrudgingly worked on the film...

turn sour on set. He simply didn't want to do it.

I guess he was unhappy.

April 16th.

7.00 a.m. We just finished three weeks night shoots.

Finally the sun is out. And the moon.

When we were shooting in Spain, the crew often had drinks together.

Rutger never joined us. He immediately went back to his trailer.

This is El Cid's castle, he is from the good side.

And this is Ruttie's castle. Also from the good side.

Olive trees everywhere.

I've lost 16 pounds...

since production started.

I don't think I've ever seen Rutger angry. Not once. Never.

He didn't always agree with things and sometimes he would fall silent.

Perhaps to think things over.

But he was never angry. With anyone.

I only realize now why he was so hurt by us.

How we kept on pushing and waving his signature in his face.

That was a terrible mistake on our part.

He took it very personally and felt very alone.

I caught a small bat lying on the stairs in the castle.

It's somewhere in the trailer now. I don't know where.

Tomorrow, when the sun comes up...

...I will crawl my way up the stairs.

And I will enter my tiny home...

walk all the way to the back with an orange...

...and crawl into bed.

In a way, I considered Rutger my alter ego.

I could always express myself through Rutger.

Perhaps Rutger was the person I wanted to be or could have been.

Looking back on it today, we had a similar relationship...

to that of Fellini and Mastroianni.

Certain work relationships are just intrinsically successful.

I didn't realize that the moral aspects of Flesh & Blood...

were unbearable to the Americans.

I didn't do him any good, I'm afraid.

I would almost say this film worked against him.

He shouldn't have done it. I really believe that.

no one can bring me down

But he loved Paul very much. He has so much to thank Paul for.

He thought of Paul as an amazing director.

Pity they haven't been able to work together more.

But things just turned out differently.

We did make amends. We got over it, so to speak.

But we never worked together on a film again.

I've never been more celebrated...

and humiliated than I have been in the US.

Two extremes, I've experienced them both.

It's such bullshit. So irrelevant. Utter nonsense. Nothing but hype.

Nothing but hype.

That's why it's so important to keep your dignity.

Absolutely. It's some sort of dance, trying to keep your dignity.

In a way, it's a gift. To acknowledge that you can't please everyone.

And there are plenty of people who do understand.

You shouldn't underestimate your audience...

...in understanding your message.

And Rutger's fans really understood him.

Sientje. Sien.

No barking allowed.

Over here, Slim. Here, boy. No, over here.

That's it, boy. They're nothing but big dogs to him.

What was all that?

It was a bit frightening as well, wasn't it?

Stay, Slim.

You have to put someone else's happiness before your own.

You have to let go and accept each other completely...

accept their work or anything they do...

whatever they may be. Whatever they're passionate about.

And sometimes these passions meet. But I always let Rutger roam free.

Which may be why he was always there.

He really couldn't be without me.

Gifted people usually have more than one talent.

Rutger had a knack for writing. A gift for languages.

Whether it was Dutch, English, Italian... A gift for languages.

I'm now taking the opportunity...

to discuss my views with the director.

Sometimes not even about the film.

I starred in The Legend of the Holy Drinker.

A film that relies completely on cinematography...

instead of dialogue.

I found myself breaking barriers once more.

I have Ermanno Olmi to thank for that.

He said to me: 'Rutger, it's an action movie.

But here. Here.'

That was his mentor. He thought the world of him.

I'm certain that Rutger knew it was going to be very special.

He's so unbelievably sexy in that film. So handsome.

I never dreamed of being an actor. I've been one for 25 years now.

There's nothing to it. So I'm starting a school...

to show how easy acting really is.

One of my most famous colleagues once told me...

that you only need one week...

to learn everything you need to know about making a film.

Today all we need is ten minutes. You can set the timer.

Rutger wanted us to make as many movies as possible in ten days...

forcing everyone to trust their intuition and follow their gut.

These are the camera and the camera operator.

All you have to do is drag them...

Keep it simple.

Something Hollywood is not capable of.

But you are.

He was a master of gestures and simple physical contact.

But he also loved goofing around.

Well, his role in Blade Runner was certainly one of his best.

He played a scary and menacing character.

But that rooftop scene makes you forget all about that.

It almost makes you sympathize...

with this sad character...

who knows his time is up and the clockwork comes to a halt.

But the way he plays this scene...

makes you contemplate your own mortality.

We've had beautiful conversations just before his passing.

Such...

Gosh...

As I sat beside him in the garden. I saw our history and love.

As if nothing had ever changed.

There is someone you love and this person loves you back.

That's the most beautiful thing in life.

And I'm so grateful for our 50 years together.

Having loved someone so dearly makes it such a great loss.

The crazy life we've had. It's all over.

Everything's different now.

I have to reinvent myself, so to speak.

Rutger has always been my backbone and never left my side.

Who berated me at times, but always saw me for who I am.

But that's all over now. And everything has changed. Yeah...